Monthly Archives: July 2012

During the fall and spring semesters, we invited our Facebook and Twitter communities to share photos of the changing seasons. We decided to keep the tradition going by asking our followers to send us photos of their choice Chico summer hangouts. We received many gorgeous photos, but can only post a few, so here is a collection of our favorites. Enjoy!

It’s been three years since I graduated, but wandering through the campus recently still brought back brilliant memories: sprawling out in the Glenn Hall grass in the sunshine between classes, lacrosse runs (with sticks and balls) that crossed all seven bridges, wearing my ADPi letters for the first time on a Thursday. Just as I was overwhelmed by the beauty of Butte County, I was impressed by the lush green campus. Why didn’t I appreciate this more when I was a student?

I don’t know if I could ever move back to Chico: I’ve spent the past few years living and traveling around the world, and I’ve discovered I have a penchant for big, bustling cities. But the four years I spent at Chico were some of the best of my life, and there are certainly a few things I wouldn’t mind carrying with me wherever I go.

Farmers Market: I loved waking up early on Saturday mornings, grabbing my Chico Bag and walking to the Farmers’ Market. I’d get a cup of Chico Chai to sip as I wandered the stalls, picking up my favorite brown rice, seasonal fruit and vegetables, fresh flowers, and perhaps a tamale for lunch.

Bike culture: I had a beautiful lime green three-speed cruiser that carried me to lacrosse practice, to parties, to One Mile. I love how easy it is to bike around town – to get to class or work and to run errands. I also loved just going on bike rides with friends to while away an afternoon in Bidwell Park—the perfect excuse to skip the library and get outside on a sunny spring day!

Living minutes from all of my best friends: I lived in Whitney Hall my freshman year, and after that, I lived downtown for three years. I either lived with my best friends—one year I lived with eight other girls in a renovated Victorian, another with 20 of my sorority sisters in the ADPi house—or minutes from them. Keeping in touch with constant texts, occasional phone calls, and annual weekends in San Francisco just isn’t the same as seeing each other every day.

The beautiful campus: I love the springtime blooms, the bubbling creek, the smorgasbord of trees. The amphitheatre on the creek was actually one of the clinchers when I was deciding where to go to school: what other campus not only has a creek running through it year-round, but has a nearby amphitheatre with the stage on one side of the creek and the seating on the other?

The little things: I miss the mural on the side of Taylor Hall. Eating a pastry in the window at Upper Crust. Going tubing on the Sacramento River. Samplers at Sierra Nevada. Spending my mornings in the TGC (Tehama Group Communications) office. ‘80s night at LaSalles. Study parties on the fourth floor of Meriam. Tropical fish tacos at Tres Hombres. When the leaves changed in autumn and the whole campus turned a thousand luminous shades.

When my big brother Karl died of AIDS in July of 2000, it changed my life forever. I struggled with the fact that I did not support my brother as he battled this horrific disease. My family never really talked about Karl being HIV positive because of the many assumptions, stereotypes, and the stigma associated with this disease. We could have and should have done more to support him. What my family failed to realize is that HIV/AIDS does not discriminate. My hope is that one day, we will deal with HIV/AIDS patients in the same compassionate way as we deal with people diagnosed with other diseases such as cancer.

For years I dealt with the guilt of not supporting Karl and vowed that I would somehow help educate the public and do my part in making a difference. One day while watching the Logo Channel, I saw a documentary highlighting AIDS/Life Cycle. I learned that this seven-day, 545-mile bike ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles raises money and awareness about HIV/AIDS.

I was so inspired that I signed up, even though I had never ridden a bicycle for more than 15 miles at one time. On June 9th this year, I completed my sixth AIDS/Life-Cycle ride; I truly love the experience and the community that is formed during those seven days. I have met lifelong friends who I cherish and communicate with on a regular basis. I am filled with joy as I cross the finish line in Los Angeles and am greeted with loving hugs from my adorable partner Jim, family members, and friends. I am already looking forward to riding next year.

Since joining the AIDS/Life-Cycle Family, I have been inspired to become a HIV certified test counselor, HIV local planning committee member, and chair of the Chico AIDS Walk Planning Committee.

HIV/AIDS is a community issue – if one person has this disease, everyone does.

We’re the Career Center. Simply put, we help students and alumni get career positions and internships. Here are a few reasons to check us out:

We do resume and cover letter reviews. Writing a quality resume is the first step in a successful job search. Our friendly career advisers will help you edit and format your resume and cover letters.

We do mock interviews—and coordinate real ones. You can practice your interview skills by doing a pretend interview with us. And did you know that real employers come to the Career Center and conduct real interviews for real career positions and real internships? It’s true. Really! You can find out how to sign up for these interviews at the Career Center.

We’re connected. We have an exclusive (just for Chico State students/alumni) job database we call JOBCAT, and we stay connected with students via Facebook, Twitter, and Linked-In. And next time you’re on campus, be on the lookout for the Job Mob — it’s another way we stay connected with our peeps.

We host fun, educational events. From career fairs and workshops to our very popular etiquette dinner, we host multiple events each year. And yes, students DO tell us our events are educational and fun!

We know how to help those who don’t know. Are you confused about what major and/or career path to choose? We can help! As a starting point, we may suggest our new, online career assessment, FOCUS2. It’s free!

We help with grad school applications. We know the ins and outs of the sometimes-confusing grad school app process. We can help you set a timeline and review your application materials.

We welcome students of all majors, seeking all types of occupations. If you’ve checked out our services and don’t see programs that seem to fit your needs, stop by or give us a call. We’d love to help you with your specific career plans.